I think this movie is about the idealism bred through pain and grief and the inevitable proverbial car crash that results when reality necessarily disappoints and fractures such idealistic ways of combatting pain. It is only through this destruction that one can mature with their pain and become truly whole once more.
Lee Chang-dong is quickly becoming one of my favorite directors ever. The genius level of depth and variety of his depictions of life’s hardships cement him as one of the greatest storytellers of the modern age. I will forever be a fan.
